It did not sound like rookie head coach Jesse Minter is ready to spend a lot of time and energy evaluating veteran kickers after Saturday night. Everyone in the Ravens organization is inclined to believe that their drafting of kicker Tyler Loop last year will pay dividends.
But Loop followed up a massive miss at Pittsburgh in Week 17 to end Baltimore’s season with a 49-yard miss to open this preseason, and the bookending of that, even with him getting better as this exhibition opener played out, has continued to dialogue about the special teams roster construction this summer.
Bringing in a proven NFL veteran kicker – and there are no shortage available – might be in order here. It certainly wouldn’t cost a ton of money, and if that was enough to shatter Loop or shake his confidence, then he’s not the man for the job long-term anyway. It stands to reason it couldn’t hurt much, and while Minter hasn’t ever slammed that option shut, and he didn’t quite again after Saturday’s 24-7 win over the Eagles, he also doesn’t seem to be stewing on it.
“Not really,” Minter said after the game if the miss made him thinking about adding another kicker. “Again, he bounced back well.”
Loop was barely asked to kick around 50 yards last year – it’s become increasingly commonplace leaguewide– and it came as no surprise the Ravens wanted to see him try it in this game and will surely seek opportunities in any exhibition game to test him. Loop said he felt good about pretty much everything that went into the kick, but it was clear even to a kicking novice that this ball had no chance to go through the uprights when it came off his foot and was always headed to the right.
The last time the Ravens were in a stadium, during the practice at College Park, Loop was quite shaky, too. Rookie punter Ryan Eckley (who shanked a 27 yard punt in his first attempt Saturday) is his new holder, and Minter noted this is a new operation in his assessment and said the staff would have to study the miss on film, too.
“We’ll see how the operation was,” Minter said, “but very happy how he was able to bounce back from that.”
Loop, who radiated positivity and mental strength when speaking at length about his huge miss from last season during OTAs, took the same approach meeting with the media Saturday. He is very cool and collected, rattling off some of his stats, and doling out praise for Eckley, but you start to wonder if he’s projecting some here, too.
He is talking like a veteran and someone very comfortable in his process and details. But is also under a very unique spotlight and has a very limited professional portfolio and resume to fall back on.
“It’s all about how you respond,” Loop said. “I didn’t make my first kick, but who cares. I got to go out and make the next one. Felt good about the rest of the hits … Felt good about the kickoffs.”
Loop said he struck the ball well and it felt good and he was aiming at the proper third of the target as he should … and then … “it started bleeding right, that’s all there was to it.”
The second-year kicker said the miss from last year wasn’t hanging over him and he was in no hurry to make another one or get this experience over with. He said he relishes the rare chance to get in a game setting with the crowd and the lights and an opposing team and all of that. He wasn’t taking anything for granted.
“It was relief to just have this game,” Loop said, “and it’s like, alright, we’re back in rhythm.”
Loop did make his other field goal and extra points – but, again, kicking from 40 and kicking from 50 are very different scenarios. Loop’s rookie season rated quite well compared to rookie kicking seasons over the last 10 years. And kicking experts like former NFL kicker (and Terp great) Nick Novak swear the kid has All-Pro potential (as explained on “The Daily Flock” below).. But watching that ball clearly going right just like his last kick in a game was clearly going left, gave me more pause.
Kicking coach Randy Brown clearly didn’t look thrilled on the sideline, either. And rookie kickers in other games were smashing balls from well beyond 50 yards this weekend. Having a veteran on the roster isn’t a novelty and having a real kicking competition isn’t taboo.
Something like this goes down next weekend in Minnesota, and it’s time to take action.
Hopefully the group of free agents would still be robust enough in that instance. For all the times we’ve been forced to listen to coaches blather on about iron sharpening iron and such trite sayings, this position is too important for it not to apply here.
Subscribe To “The Daily Flock” On YouTube For Urgent Ravens Coverage And Discussions:
Add us as a preferred source on Google
